Over the years, one of the most persistent problems encountered in the dispensing of condiments, such as salt, has been the tendency of such condiments to agglomerate and become stuck in the dispensing openings of the shaker or other controlled type dispenser. This problem is particularly troublesome in geographical areas which are exposed to very high humidity, since the water vapor in the air often condenses on the condiment particles in such a dispenser causing further agglomeration.
Numerous solutions to this problem have been proposed, many of which utilize a series of prongs or fingers to be extended into the openings of a dispenser to clear the openings of any clogged condiment. In several devices, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,479,811; 2,681,749; and 2,656,076, these prongs are permanently fixed in the dispensing openings of the condiment container, and movement of the prongs is controlled by the action of inverting the container. In such devices, however, condiment particles may be become lodged in the openings surrounding the prongs themselves, thus preventing the prongs from moving when the dispenser is inverted. A similar problem may occur in any device which has a rod or prong extending through the dispensing end of the container, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,197,077 and 2,083,624.
Several other approaches to this clogging problem have included the use of some type of biasing means to control the movement of the prongs into and out of the dispensing openings. U.S. Pat. Nos. 964,433; 2,480,421; and 1,238,118 all disclosed structures in which some portion of the bottom surface of the condiment dispenser can be forced upward against a spring bias to project a set of prongs into the dispensing openings. Dispensers such as those disclosed in these patents are somewhat complicated to produce, and their clearing mechanisms are not readily adapted to use with normally available condiment containers of standard designs. Also, such clearing structures may not be wholly contained within a cap portion of such a dispenser.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention to improve condiment dispensers having a manually operated hole clearing means.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved condiment dispenser in which the hole-clearing means is not, itself, subject to clogging.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved condiment dispenser with the hole-clearing mechanism wholly contained within a cap portion of the dispenser.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.